Nudge
by karasel
Summary: Some of the troops think it's about time their favorite couple had a little nudge in the right direction.


**disclaimer: **_Not mine, too bad_

**rating: **K+

**A/N: **_ Just a little piece of fun fluff_

**feedback: **_ I love it! Thanks!_

**.**

**Nudge**

By _karasel_

_._

"Twenty bucks says they start seeing each other in the next few weeks," Stackhouse waved the bills at Chuck who simply laughed.

"I got fifty that says they're already sleeping together," Chuck answered.

"If you're talking about who I think you're talking about," came a crisp voice from behind the two startled men, "you're both completely out of your minds."

Chuck and Stackhouse looked up nervously to where Major Lorne had strolled far too quietly behind them in the Rec Room. Their eyes were wide as they wondered what Sheppard's 2IC would do. Although truthfully he couldn't know who they were actually talking about since they hadn't mentioned any names.

"Sheppard and Teyla are both too professional to go slinking around behind people's back in some sort of need based relationship," Lorne scoffed at the gamblers. Then his eyebrow rose. "Now if you wanted to bet on how they _feel _about each other, then my money would be on '_crazy out of their minds over each other_'. They just haven't figured it out yet."

Chuck just rolled his eyes. "That one's an easy bet. Everyone can see that Sheppard and Teyla are nuts about each other. I'm just wondering when it'll become public knowledge."

Lorne laughed and shook his head. "I think _they_ have to figure it out before they go telling anyone else."

Stackhouse looked thoughtful. "Think there's any way we could maybe push them into a situation where they'd feel the need to … oh I don't know , … make a move on each other."

Chuck looked really intrigued and Lorne scowled. He could never be involved in something like that on their CO. But on the other hand … the Colonel and Teyla sure did make a cute couple and he knew they were crazy in love with each other even if _they_ didn't know it.

He gave a small grin as he eyed Chuck and Stackhouse. "Let me think about this and see what I can come up with."

Chuck laughed and responded, "Yes, Sir. I wouldn't mind spending a little time giving you a hand."

"Okay," Lorne conceded and looked at both men. "Let me know if you think of anything. But it can't be too obvious and it definitely can't be anything that could get us court-martialed, understood? Just a little _nudge_."

Stackhouse and Chuck smiled widely and snapped out, "Understood, Sir." And by the time Lorne had left the Rec Room both their minds were whirling with all sorts of ideas.

.

.

John picked himself up from the floor one more time and tried to stifle the groan as he did. Teyla was relentless today and he was having a hard time just keeping from being totally destroyed by her. He certainly didn't have the chance to actually go on the offensive.

He figured maybe it was her new admirer inspiring her. He didn't actually know who that was but he had seen the flowers she'd gotten this morning. Maybe she just wanted to finish him off and get to thanking whoever gave them to her.

"Okay, Teyla," John grunted as he rolled his sore shoulder, "I think I've probably put in as much as I'm able today. You're off the hook if you have better things to do."

Teyla grinned impishly. "If you practiced more, John, you would have further success. I am certainly happy to assist you with this. But you must put in the effort."

"Yeah, yeah," John mumbled as he picked up his bag and left the gym with Teyla strolling behind tucking her bantos rods in her bag. He knew it didn't really matter how much he practiced with her. He spent too much time focusing on her outfit than on what he was supposed to do. He wondered if her sparring clothes looked as they did just for that purpose.

He let her enter the transporter before him and leaned past her to touch the display, inhaling her arousing scent as he did.

.

.

"Okay, Radek, they just entered the transporter near the gym. Now!" Chuck commanded as he watched the two blips leave the gym and head into the transporter.

Radek tapped away at some keys on his laptop. Lorne stood behind them hoping it hadn't been a bad decision enlisting Zalenka's help in this little scheme. But they had needed someone who knew and could manipulate the city's systems without being detected. Radek had seemed the perfect choice and he was very happy to assist.

Lorne knew it couldn't be McKay. First, he was absolutely clueless when it came to the attraction between Teyla and Sheppard. Second, he couldn't keep a secret to save his life. They knew he'd spill the beans long before they were able to carry out their plan. The one they'd secretly named: Project Nudge.

"Stackhouse, what's your twenty?" Lorne asked the other member of their little group over his comm.

"In the designated position, Sir," Stackhouse responded cryptically. Lorne knew that he was near the transporter but out of sight for now. They didn't want anyone coming along and screwing up their little mission.

Lorne held his breath as power was shut down to the transporter near the gym. Hopefully no one else would notice. McKay was in his lab doing '_very important work'_ according to Zalenka and was just thrilled that Radek was needed elsewhere and wouldn't be around to bother him. Ronon was in the gym closest to the Central Tower training some of the troops there and Lorne had made sure that would last for at least a few hours. He'd even ordered a few men to ask for some extra personal training. They thought it was because Lorne was planning to put them on an away team if they did and he knew Ronon would be thrilled to give extra work to some of the newbies.

He crossed his fingers as he saw the two dots inside the transporter, standing next to each other. He hoped soon they would be a little bit closer.

.

.

John touched the screen for the Central Tower and frowned as the display went dark. The whole transporter went dark, too.

He looked up and saw Teyla in the dim glow from the emergency lighting. Her eyes were concerned as were his.

John lifted his hand to touch his ear when he realized he hadn't put his radio back in. He dug in his bag and remembered he had left it in his quarters because he hated being disrupted when he was sparring with Teyla.

"Do you have your radio?" he asked Teyla. She dug in her bag and handed him the ear piece.

"Control, this is Sheppard, do you read?" John hoped that communications were still up and running with whatever had happened here.

"_Go ahead, Colonel_," he heard Chuck's voice come over the comm.

"Uh, we just lost power in the transporter located near the small gym on the other side of the city. Is there a problem I should know about?"

"_Dr. Zalenka just picked up that information on his screen. It seems that's the only section of the city that's been affected. He's running a diagnostic to see what happened. Can you sit tight until he figures it out?"_

John rolled his eyes. "Guess we'll have to. Just ask him to hurry it up, okay."

Zalenka's voice now spoke in his ear. "_I will work as quickly as possible, Colonel. But it could very well be something I need to fix locally. You know that area of city is well over a mile away from Central Tower. I will do what I can from here then if need be, I will start travelling the distance to other side of city_."

John sighed in frustration. "Thanks, Radek, just … do what you need to do. We'll be right here if you need us."

"_Sir_," Chuck broke in. "_Who else is with you_?"

"Teyla," John answered knowing there were far worse people he could be stuck with. "Just keep us in the loop as to what's happening, okay? Sheppard, out."

John looked at Teyla apologetically. "Seems there's some power outage in this section of the city. Zalenka's working on it. Sorry if that ruins any plans you had."

Teyla's eyes widened. "I had no plans other than to take a shower and then get some dinner later. It is my day off."

"Yeah, I know," John answered. "Mine, too. I just thought maybe you had some important plans and someplace to be. You know dinner with someone."

Teyla's eyes were still innocent. "I had thought I would eat with you, Ronon and Rodney as usual. Whom did you think I would be dining with?"

John shrugged then lowered himself to the floor. Teyla followed suit, facing him from the other side of the small transporter. "The person who gave you the flowers this morning, maybe."

"The flowers?" Teyla appeared confused. "I had thought _you_ had put them in my quarters. They said they were to brighten up my day as it is the anniversary of Carson's death. I knew you were aware they were the kind I like from the mainland. I wonder who they are from."

John thought about Carson and frowned, still missing the man immensely. But he hadn't given her the flowers. Now he wished he had.

"They could be from anyone, Teyla," John snorted embarrassed that he hadn't thought to mark the date. "Half the guys on base are in love with you. I'm sure one of them wanted to win points."

Teyla's face flushed with embarrassment but she also noticed that John's tone was almost envious. Was he jealous? Teyla dare not even entertain those thoughts. It would be too painful to imagine them and then have them be wrong.

"You are imagining things, John," Teyla declared self-consciously and rolled her eyes. "Half the men in love with me."

"Take my word for it, Teyla, they are," John assured her and his look made her think he didn't like that they were.

Teyla decided to test out his feelings, or perhaps get him to show them even a tiny bit more. "Even you?" she teased hoping he would answer truthfully but making sure he knew it could be a joke if he did not feel that way.

John narrowed his eyes and his smile turned crooked. "Maybe."

He tried not to focus on her skimpy sparring clothes and the scent of her wafting into his nostrils from their close quarters. He wondered if the spicy, exotic smell of her was affecting his mind because he actually blurted out, "especially when you wear that outfit."

Teyla looked down surprised, "My outfit? This is what I always wear to spar."

"Yeah, I know," John sighed and knew his mind was still being affected by her nearness. "You ever consider it's why I can never actually beat you; that and the fact that you're a million times better than me."

Teyla almost stopped breathing at his words. Had John Sheppard just admitted that her outfit affected him so much he couldn't adequately participate in their sparring exercises? That was a very intoxicating thought. And did it mean he had feelings for her beyond friendship? She wondered how she could find that out. Would he confess to her his feelings if she asked or would he simply hide behind witty remarks and jokes as he usually did when emotions were discussed?

Teyla tugged at her top and rearranged the flaps on her skirt to cover her legs better. "I am sorry, John. I had no idea this outfit was distracting to you. I have always used this to practice and have grown quite accustomed to it."

"Don't apologize, Teyla," John insisted. "It's fine. And I've gotten used to it too. Maybe I'm just using it as an excuse for why I suck so bad every time I spar with you."

This was more the answer she was expecting from John; the quips and jokes and excuses. She knew he had a difficult time expressing emotions and feelings. He had told her so before. But she wondered if there was a way to perhaps get him to admit to something, _anything _more than friendship.

Teyla looked around the transporter and sighed. Would they be here for a while or was rescue imminent? John saw her looking around and clicked on the radio again.

"Zalenka, this is Sheppard. You find anything yet?"

"_I have isolated area that is affected, Colonel_," Zalenka answered. "_But unfortunately there is only so much I can do from here. It will take me at least half hour to reroute power from control room first but then I must move to the control panel closer to your section before I can fix it entirely. It could be an hour or more before you will be free. I am sorry, Colonel. I am working fast as I can_."

John looked at Teyla leaning against the far wall, still much too close for his senses, and wasn't sure he really wanted to be rescued quite yet. Their conversation, while a bit awkward, had still been extremely interesting. He wondered if it could get even more interesting. He wondered if he was _brave_ enough to make it more interesting.

"Don't worry about it, Radek. I know you're doing the best you can. We're fine in here. It's a little warm but we've got some water bottles and we'll be okay for a while. Just do what you can."

"_Of course, Colonel. Thank you for understanding_." John signed off and wondered curiously about Radek's tone of voice. He had almost sounded like he had been chuckling. Nah, Radek wasn't the kind of person to get enjoyment out of someone else's suffering. But then he and Teyla were hardly suffering. It had only been about twenty-five minutes since they'd been stuck in here.

John got up and stretched but realized he couldn't actually move around much in the tiny enclosed space, certainly not without stepping on Teyla. As he moved his arms above his head, he grunted in pain.

"John," Teyla asked concerned. "Are you injured?"

John gave a wry smile and said, "Not really. I think I just pulled a muscle or something that last time you threw me on the ground. My shoulder's a little sore. Nothing to worry about."

Teyla stood up and moved behind him. "I am sorry, John. Perhaps I can massage it to help it feel better until you can put ice on it."

"I'm fine, Teyla," John said but winced again as he turned to face her.

Teyla tilted her head and suggested, "I have some ointment in my bag that I use when I have stiff muscles. I can apply some to your shoulder if you wish."

John was about to reply again that he was fine but then the thought of Teyla rubbing something into his skin became too tempting and he changed his mind. Her proximity sure was affecting him.

He gave her his best puppy dog eyes and asked, "You don't mind? It is starting to get kind of stiff."

Teyla's smile grew wide. "I do not mind at all. Sit down and I will get it."

John sat on the floor of the transporter and watched as Teyla pulled a tube out of her bag. She kneeled behind him and instructed, "You will need to remove your shirt so I can reach the affected area."

John took a deep breath and wondered if he wasn't asking for trouble. Teyla rubbing cream into his skin, yeah, that could be dangerous, for certain parts of his anatomy anyway. He tugged the shirt off and dropped it beside his foot.

He felt Teyla kneel behind him, her knees on either side of his hips and that little fact alone made his stomach do flips and other parts take notice. He hoped he wouldn't embarrass himself. But he'd managed to hide that problem on many other occasions so he figured it would be okay.

Teyla scooted up close behind John's bare back and slid her knees to each side of him. The action sent shivers up her spine and she was glad that John was facing away from her. It would not do to allow him to see how he affected her. Or would it? She wondered what he would do if she let her feelings be known to him. But it was not the way of her people.

Teyla squeezed the ointment from the tube into the palm of her hand and rubbed them together to warm it. She was actually a little nervous about doing this and wondered what had ever possessed her to offer. She knew what, though. She had desired to touch John's skin for a very long time and the temptation had become much too strong for her to resist any longer, not with this opportunity presenting itself.

Her hands lifted and began to massage the shoulder that he had been favoring earlier. John tensed at first but then she felt him breathe a sigh of relief as her fingers eased the knots that had been plaguing the area. Teyla tried to be detached as her fingers moved over John's skin but she knew it would be difficult. She had dreamed of doing just this so many times.

She knelt up higher to reach the top of his shoulder and dared a peek down to his chest. It was just as nice as she had remembered from when she had cut his shirt open while the Iratus bug had been attached. She so longed to run her fingers down and over the soft fur covering a good portion of his nicely, muscled torso.

She shook her head and resumed her massage and then leaned her head to John's. "Is this feeling any better, John?"

John almost groaned at the feel of her breath in his ear. His shoulder was feeling much better but there were other parts that were coming alive that he felt would unfortunately be ultimately disappointed. "It's amazing, Teyla. You're amazing."

Teyla grinned and then a mischievous spark entered her and she spoke something she would normally never attempt. But she so wanted to probe more into John's feelings.

"You are only saying that because you are in love with me," she teased lightly giving him the opportunity to deny it with a joke or laugh of his own. She held her breath as she waited for his reply.

John heard what Teyla said and wondered how to respond. She had said it in a kidding manner but he wondered if perhaps she had been half serious. He hoped she was but wasn't sure exactly how to proceed. He'd never been one who was comfortable with feelings and his track record with women was pretty bad. But this woman, he had wanted to say things to her for some time and had never had the balls to do it. Was she giving him the opportunity now?

John's hand slipped off his lap and landed on Teyla's leg by his hip and the shock of her silky skin against his rough palm made him take the step he thought he might never be brave enough to take.

"Yeah, maybe I am, Teyla." His voice was not light and easy as it usually was when he was making a joke or kidding around and Teyla felt winged creatures flutter wildly in her stomach. Could he really be saying what she had hoped to hear for over three years?

Her hands stilled on his shoulder and she sat staring at his back for several seconds. She had started this backwards discussion but now did not know how to proceed.

John felt her stiffen and took a deep breath before he attempted to turn around to look at her. When he did, her uncertain, anxious face made all his fears and uncertainties disappear. She looked as scared as he felt. He never wanted her to be scared with him.

He lifted his hand to touch her cheek and stroke it tenderly down the side of her face. "Would you have a problem with that, Teyla?" John asked, his own anxiety apparent in his expression.

Teyla had to stop and think what he was replying to. When she realized it was her statement that he was in love with her, she thought her heart had stopped. But with the intense gaze he had focused on her it began to beat again, this time rapidly.

She felt the tiniest bit of moisture pool in her eyes and she covered his hand with her own. "I would have no problem at all, John."

The smile that lit John's face allowed her to find her courage as well. "The thought would bring me great pleasure as I, too, have similar feelings."

John noticed that she hadn't said what those feelings were but he could live with that for now. He hadn't actually said them either. He had just responded to Teyla's original words. But he thought that maybe now they could at least go forward.

His first step in that was leaning closer and pressing his lips to hers; just the briefest of touches but when he saw her close her eyes and lean in also, he slid his other hand into her hair and held her to him. This next kiss was a bit stronger but no less tender. He was happy to feel Teyla respond equally to the pressure of his mouth.

Their lips stayed attached for several moments as they each explored this new sensation. Teyla's hands rose to his shoulders and he again felt the touch of her fingers on his bare skin. He was afraid that he would get addicted to it very quickly and be disappointed if it had to stop.

John eventually pulled back from her but only enough to stare at her beautiful face. "Are you okay with this, Teyla?" John asked and Teyla saw his expression grow anxious again.

Teyla smiled and voiced her own fears. "If you wish to continue with this type of relationship then I am fine. I will not be fine if you say we cannot allow this to grow. I have wished for this for too long."

"Really?" John looked shocked. "Me, too. Man, now I really wish I had gotten up the nerve to say something earlier. But you didn't say anything either."

"It is not the way of my people for women to make the first move," Teyla explained. "It was not something I was comfortable doing."

John looked around the low lit transporter and mentally gave thanks for the power failure. If he had known it would end in these results, he might have tried shutting the power off with his mind.

He pulled Teyla in close to his chest and sighed when her arms wrapped around his neck. "So we both want this to go forward, right."

At Teyla's nod, John grinned and kissed her again. "Well I guess we can start a little on that right now. There's not much else to do until they get the power back in this section of the city."

"Yes," Teyla whispered her eyes sparkling. "It would be a shame to waste this time just sitting here bored."

John's hand slid behind her neck. "Yeah, I don't think I'm gonna be bored. From now on, I don't think I'll ever be bored. I'll have you to keep me company and that's something I'm gonna enjoy for a very long time."

Teyla kissed him again. "I agree. This is definitely something for us both to cherish and I wish for it to last forever."

As John's lips surrounded hers he repeated, "Forever."

.

.

Lorne, Chuck, and Zalenka all smiled when they saw the little blips on the screen almost blend into one. They wondered exactly how it had gone down but knew they'd probably never get that information. They waited about ten minutes then Zalenka activated his comm.

"Colonel Sheppard, are you both still fine? There is slight problem in another area and I am needed. But I will tell Dr. McKay that I cannot assist him until I rescue you. He insists it will only take a few minutes but you know Rodney, he exaggerates quite extensively."

All three men grinned at the reply from Sheppard.

"_It's okay Radek, do what you need to do with Rodney. We're perfectly fine in here. Can't have McKay having a fit. Just give us a head's up when you finally get close, huh_?"

"Will do, Colonel," Zalenka replied and tried to keep the satisfaction from his voice.

He turned around and met the grins and laughter of the others. No words were needed.

"Stackhouse," Lorne said into his comm. "Mission accomplished. You should probably stay at your post just to make sure our package isn't disturbed for a while."

Lorne thought about Sheppard and Teyla and what they might be doing. "Stackhouse, you might want to find a comfortable seat. It could be a while."

.

.


End file.
